


then beg.

by ElatedFangirl



Category: K-pop, NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Drabble, Idk what happened, M/M, Office intern taeyong, Sassy barista ten, This was supposed to be short because drabble, idk what this is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-30 17:45:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19408231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElatedFangirl/pseuds/ElatedFangirl
Summary: Ten is a grumpy barista and a poor customer gets the brunt of it.





	then beg.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!  
> This is inspired of some picture I saw online lol  
> I'm not really satisfied with how this turned out but I hope you enjoy this somehow :)

It has been a busy day yet again in the cafe. What does Ten expect, really? With the universities and offices surrounding the area, their famous cafe - _Barista_ , is bound to be packed every minute of every day. Ten knows everyone needs their caffeine fix one way or another. And he takes his by gulping a mouthful of the iced americano he made for himself before he takes his short fifteen-minute break.

He stretches his legs in front of him, easing some of the pain there as he sips more coffee from his tumbler. He has been up and about since nine in the morning and he's taking his first break of the day now at two in the afternoon. He is sore all over and tired.

They are seriously short handed today, with how Winwin suddenly called in sick and Xiaojun taking his day off a day earlier. Lucas and Yangyang has been complaining non-stop since ten in the morning, saying they need their breakfast but are only allowed a break at noon.

The people are unceasing. Black, blue, patterned suits come and go. Students still in their pajamas, some in their quirky, casual, or preppy clothes come and stay for a few then go on their separate ways as well. It has been a really busy day that even their manager and owner, Kun, has joined in to man the cashier and let Hendery join in the brewing and serving as well.

It is still busy. Ten can hear the rustle and chatters from behind the door of the storage room and he just sighs. Just a few more hours and he can finally be with his bed again - his soft and velvety bed. He has to hold back a sigh just thinking about it. But then he has to wake up and do the same routine again. Ugh, he seriously misses university.

He knows for sure he still has at least five minutes left in his assigned break but Ten groans as he hears Kun yelling his name.

"Ten! Get in here. We need all hands. Hurry up!"

He sighs, groaning in pain as his sore muscles complain for the pressure yet again. He ties his apron around his waist, moves to put his tumbler away and walks the short distance from where he is sitting to the door. He hears his name again as he pushes the door.

"Ten!! We nee-"

"I'm here." Ten cuts Kun off, seriously getting tired of the insistent calls of his name. He only gives Kun, along with a few others, the license to annoy him. This time, the cause is justified and he lets it pass, giving credit to the other shutting the moment he is cut off. He approaches the post that Kun is pointing at.

"Man the register. Get the orders. Be good."

Ten rolls his eyes at the commands. Of course, he'll be good. As long as the customers aren't rude, then he'll be good. Sometimes, people really just need a reality check and so Ten sasses them and slams their attitude to the ground. Maybe that's why Kun rarely lets him handle the register. Not that Ten is complaining about that either. People are a handful. He'd choose order concoction over cash register manning any day.

Ten takes a deep breath as he arrives at the register, eyes cast down as he speaks. "Good afternoon. May I get your order?"

Ten doesn't look at the man and just keeps his eyes on the machine, waiting for the order. When the man speaks, his voice is a soft baritone against Ten's ears.

"Venti cool lime refresher, no water, substitute lemonade, no limes, no ice, three pumps of peach syrup, please."

Ten groans internally. Not only are they out of any fruit drinks, the order is customized too. It's certainly a self-made recipe. He closes his eyes for a second and brings them up to look at the man. He sees him just tucking a piece of paper inside his black coat's inner pocket. So he has been reading that from a note. Ten bets this drink isn't even for him. That's what bosses around here do - slave their workers.

Ten speaks in a monotone, "I'm sorry. We don't serve fruit drinks here."

The man's eyes widen, look bordering dismay but still hopeful as he questions, "What? This is a cafe though."

Ten almost rolls his eyes. Why can't customers just take what is given to them? They must always ask and it takes Ten more energy than necessary having to explain, "I'm sorry, sir. We usually do serve fruit drinks and teas. But today we couldn't. Our order delivery failed to arrive in time. Maybe you can come back again next time, sir."

Curse this. Sometimes, Ten really do question why he has to answer his father the way he did, boastfully saying he can earn his own money. If it isn't for his rash mouth, he could be in some other country now, enjoying his break to the fullest.

He wants to hit himself.

"I beg your pardon?"

Ten sighs quietly. What's with office workers and their absolute need to overuse formalities and shove it in other people's throats? This is a cafe for heaven's sake! What's so formal about ordering a coffee - or a lemonade?

This is just his first customer since manning the register and his patience is already spreading thin. He purses his lips for a moment and when he speaks, he does it slowly. "I said, we don't have fruit drinks. We don't serve it here today. Maybe you can come back again the next time. Hopefully when you do, we could serve it to you. _Sir_." The last word is a clip. Ten flashes a forced smile.

The customer looks worried. He bites his bottom lip, either in thought or in worry. He looks at Ten again and tries once more. "Are you sure you don't have it today?"

"Nope." Ten says with a pop of his lips. He shakes his head as he says his response. Given that there is no more decent cafe in the surrounding area, Ten is sure this worker is in for a tiring day. He actually needs to go to the neighboring office hub for one that could possibly assist him with his complicated order. The trip will be quite a hassle given the traffic too. He feels sorry for the man. Slightly.

He follows him with his eyes as he turns his back, glances at his watch and hurries out. If only Ten isn't as tired as he is, he could have told the poor man the nearest cafe he can go.

Too bad, Ten is exhausted.

\---

The skies are clearer today. The air, cooler. The sun, brighter. And Ten's mood, better. Not to mention, everyone's present today, which easily means less work for everyone.

The other day was a definite nightmare and by the looks of his other four colleagues' faces, they agree. A short-manned cafe on a Friday is the worst that could happen. And it did. But Ten has rested. Enough for him to be up and about again.

Ten used to be so opposed on a Sunday work shift but now, he has come to love it. Out of all the days, Sundays are the easiest. Sunday is a rest day which means it is a no-work day (for everyone else, that is), which, in turn, essentially means that Barista opens later, closes earlier, and gets significantly lesser customers.

Ten is piped up and everyone seems to notice the change as Hendery points out his unusually good mood. He's always in some kind of slump after all, or so they say. "Ten-ge, what's up with you today?"

Ten snaps his head, eyes zeroing on the puzzled face of Hendery. "Hmm?"

"You're unusually cheerful today."

Ten walks the short distance between him and Hendery and slings his arm around his shoulders. "You know, little bub. There's nothing a good sleep can do."

Hendery's eyes show he isn't taking it. He side-eyes Ten before he comments, "Did your father finally give you allowance?"

Ten doesn't answer the question and just walks back to the coffee grinder, whistling a tune he just heard on the radio in his car this morning.

Today is a good day. He will call it into existence.

Ten's bright, _bright_ day pales a tad bit when Kun asks him to man the register again. When he motions to complain, the other shushes him, raising a finger in front of him. "Just do it, Ten. Please? I'll be helping the kids with the orders and avoid any kinds of poisoning."

Ten groans and rolls his eyes, surrendering as he is left with no recourse but to accept his fate. He doesn't go down without a fight though. Or a sassy remark, per se. "Just say you want to brew more than dealing with people after doing it the other day and go."

Kun edges his seat, willing to smack the other but Ten just rises from his seat, sticks his tongue out to Kun then goes on to his assigned post. When he sees his first customer, he is convinced his day is now going downhill. No happiness lasts long after all.

It's that same customer from the other day. Ten bets he will be ordering the same drink again. Ten sighs very quietly and doesn't even bother to look at the man. He just speaks with his eyes cast down. "Good morning, may I get your order?"

It's the same soft baritone Ten's ears decide they like. "Yes, please. Venti cool lime re-"

Jackpot. It's the same customized drink. He lifts his eyes and looks at the suited man in his own eyes and straight down cuts him, his words curt and final, "Sorry, we don't have that here today."

Ten watches as the man startles, lifting his eyes from the piece of paper he is reading from and his expression morphs into something bordering surprise and disappointment, "I beg your pardon?-"

Ten almost rolls his eyes but he stops himself. It has taken a whole lot of strength to do it but he has learned to control himself. That's what working has taught him, at least.

"-Again?"

"Again."

The man exhales loudly as he folds and tucks his paper in his inner coat pocket yet again. The words he murmurs to himself can still be heard by Ten and the barista just smirks, "I'll be in such a bad traffic again. Ugh-"

"Sir."

The man's head snaps up to look at Ten, dismayed eyes somewhat studying him. "Hmm?"

"If you go down the street from here, about five blocks from the post office down the road, you might find a cafe that could serve you this drink."

The office worker's face instantly lights up. His eyebrows raise simultaneously and his mouth slowly gapes open as though he just witnessed a surprise in front of him. His lips spreads to a smile and his voice is excited when he speaks, "Is there really?"

"Well, I'm not sure. Maybe?" Ten fake scratches his nape, eager to look innocent.

"I'll try!" The man lunges forward, suddenly grabbing one of his hands and squeezes it, "You're an angel! Thank you!" The man leaves fast with a huge smile on his face, leaving a stunned Ten.

If Winwin hadn't elbowed Ten's side, faking a cough by his ear, the latter wouldn't have been able to snap out of his stunned state. Ten blinks his eyes a couple of times before looking at Winwin. "What was that?"

"What's what?"

"I know that look on your face, Ten. That's the look of someone who's surprised that someone has the audacity to touch your hand suddenly. This explanation only applies to you."

Ten rolls his eyes, making sure Winwin, who's wiping the counter tops, sees it. The other barista is Ten's childhood friend, borne out of a wealthy family as well and is only working in the cafe as per Ten's request. Out of all the uncertainty, Ten wants something to, at least, be familiar for him. And that's Winwin's presence. He prepares as a new customer approaches the cash register to order, before he answers his childhood friend smugly, "You don't get to comment now especially after what you've done the other day. 'Sick' my ass. Yuta told me in detail what you've done and where you did it."

Winwin's face visibly reds. He opens his mouth, possibly to retort but he closes it again. Ten just smirks at his short-lived triumph before he adds, "I'm not talking about you getting laid. I'm talking about your date."

Ten decides Winwin's relieved yet forced laugh is annoying to hear so he pushes him away, "Please get your dirty mind out of here or else I'm telling Kun on you."

"Oh shut up, I'll tell Kun you just lied to a customer about not having fruit drinks and letting the poor man walk all the way down the street."

Winwin barely avoids the smack that came his way and just walks off to the other part of the cafe to clean more tables with a huge smile on his face.

At least, Ten is now in a good enough mood to tell the man and save him half a day in traffic.

\---

"Today's my last day."

Ten drops the bomb the minute he arrives at the cafe and sits the owner for a quick 'serious' talk.

Ten has talked to his father and although he hates to admit it but he literally crawled back to him, complaining about how his body is in so much pain with all his joints aching and his muscles sore with overuse. All he wanted to do was complain. He swears that's all! All he wanted to do was complain how hard it is to make money and how much time he is wasting working when he could be spending it resting in some other faraway country so that he could come again refreshed and ready for the next semester that would help him ace all of his subjects by then and make it easier for him to inherit their company in the future. Really, all he wanted to do is complain. Nothing else.

"I know." Kun's face isn't fazed one bit with Ten's sudden resignation. He looks like he expected this. "Your father told me."

Ten stares at Kun wide-eyed, mouth slightly agape. Kun reaches forward to close his open mouth and just smiles. "Be careful of the flies. I heard the season now brings an abundance of flies."

Ten gulps loudly before he speaks, "So you know?"

"That you're the Lee Industries heir? Of course. How could I not?"

"And Winwin?"

Kun nods his head gently, "Dong Corporation."

Ten's eyes widen all the more. All along, thinking no one knows who he is, he has tried his utmost best to act as an average, struggling person, slaving his time and body for the cafe. That's one month of his life, pretending he is just like anybody else when all along, Kun has known who exactly he is!

"And you still slaved us?"

Kun rolls his eyes, "Yes. I still slaved you. That's per request from your father. But, really, besides that, I'm never going easy on anyone. You need to learn that not everyone will glorify you, Ten. With or without your family name, you are but a person working hard for your money and that's that. We're all equal. Also it's not really slaving, is it? You saw how much people we get everyday. We need all hands always."

Ten huffs at the long lecture, crossing his arms in front of him. He doesn't expect anyone to glorify him. He just thinks that people tend to have prejudices when they learn that Ten is so much more than who he says he is. They tend to be untrue and abusive.

Nonetheless, he feels robbed. Kun has known all along and he has never told him that he's taking requests and orders from his father. There's really no questioning of his father's influence.

"You're taking Winwin with you, right?"

Ten huffs one more time before he answers, "Yes. We're both stopping after today."

"I figured. Your father will be sending in extra people after you're gone so that's taken care of. But I expect you two to come back here and help us out any time you can?"

Ten waits for a moment, faking his pondering and lets the silence stretch a bit more before he answers, "Maybe. We'll see what we can do."

Kun's lips spreads to a huge, motherly smile. "That's enough of a promise for me. I'll hold you to that." Kun stares at Ten for a few moments more then suddenly rising from his seat with a clap of his hand.

He calls the attention of all the baristas present, "Alright. It'll be another hectic day so make sure you stay grounded. Let's get to work."

Before Kun walks away, he fronts Ten and smiles his signature motherly smile yet again, "Since it's your last day, why don't you man the cash register again?" Kun winks to him and walks off to the blender to assist Yangyang and Lucas and stop the ruckus they're about to start.  


Ten's complaints have fallen on dead ears and so here he is, manning the post he dislikes the most. Kun seems really intent in slaving him until his very last second in the cafe and it's not like he can do anything about it, after all, it's his father's orders and he needs to be kind to his dad after the ridiculous stint he pulled.

He must say though, it has been quite a ride. His past month has been an experience he will never forget. He just hopes the remaining few hours he has in the cafe will not ruin everything.

It is way past lunch when he sees a familiar face and Ten's face dims. His previously somewhat cheerful demeanor is now slowly crumbling.

 _Not again_.

The man is in a sleek black suit today and he walks to the cash register and without even him saying anything yet, Ten's mind decides he already knows what he will be ordering. He starts to speak, "Hi, may I get an iced-"

Ten cuts him off. Ten knows his order. He doesn't need to hear the whole mantra of it. He knows it. "I'm sorry, we don't serve it today."

The customer's face morphs into a surprise - probably both from the interruption and the (indirect) rejection. Ten just keeps his eyes on the register, as he has done ever since the customer has reached the cashier. Ten waits for any reaction and when he hears it, he exhales audibly, already expecting the question from the other. " _I beg your pardon?_ "

He doesn't know why he did it but now that he did, there is no backing out. Ten brings his eyes up to the man and stares him straight in the eye, voice a deep timbre - commanding and superior, "Then beg."

The customer's eyes widen minutely but he holds the stare. Ten sees deep brown eyes and tries his best to keep the commanding aura despite the soft orbs looking straight at him as well. Ten expects the man to be shocked and that shock must show on his face for Ten to feel powerful or the sort but Ten doesn't know why he is secretly impressed with how the man is handling and responding to this. The customer's response is a deep baritone, barely audible as he speaks under his breath, "I was going to order an iced Americano, though."

Ten just lazily blinks, still holding the stare with his lips pursed and his eyebrow ready to raise any time soon. The man inhales deeply, as though to gather courage and speaks again, springing an unexpected question and this time he speaks much louder. "May I get your number?"

It's Ten's eyes turn to widen. He isn't expecting this response. He blinks a few times this time around, granting himself a stretch of a moment in his own head which is now frustratingly blank. He stutters when he finally speaks, "Excu--? I-I beg your pardon?"

The smirk on the man's face snaps Ten out of his muddled thoughts. The smirk remains as he speaks again, "Save it. I'll do the begging. _For now_." The suited man stretches his hand, offering it as he introduces himself, "I'm Taeyong."

It suits him. His name suits him. He looks like someone who is named _Taeyong_. And despite Ten only interacting with the man in just a span of two weeks, he feels like he can bravely declare that the man fits the name nicely. What even is this thought process? Ten is at loss. His mind is all over the place and nowhere all at the same time.

"Ten." He accepts the handshake shyly, a warm and gentle squeeze around his hand.

The smile on Taeyong's face is wide and Ten is somehow infected by it. "So, Ten, I'm finally getting off my internship in awhile, can I take you out for food?"

Such audacity. Such straightforward flirting.

He's getting to know this man for the first time today and he doesn't know what has got him to act this way. It's probably the recklessness relating to his last day of work. A grab of food with a stranger does sound like a smell of freedom. Finally.

"You will have to beg for it." Ten's voice is laced with gentle teasing, a smirk playing on his lips as he eyes the man. Sleek. Real sleek.

Taeyong's responding smile is blinding.

Needless to say, he did beg. And Ten too, much later.

**Author's Note:**

> I apologize for any grammatical errors. English is not my first language.  
> I hope you enjoyed reading this! Please do tell me what you think about it <3
> 
> TALK TO ME!  
> [TWITTER](https://twitter.com/ElatedFangirl) | [CURIOUS CAT](https://curiouscat.me/elatedfangirl) | [ASK.FM](https://ask.fm/elatedfangirl)


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